[344] Gattereri Elem. Artis Diplom. 1765, 4to, p. 285.
[345] It is singular that Pliny denies that the Egyptians used seals,
lib. xxiii. c. 1. Herodotus however, and others, prove the contrary;
and Moses speaks of the seal-rings of the Egyptians. See Goguet.
[346] Herodot. lib. ii. c. 38.
[347] Lucian. in Pseudomant.
[348] Act. iv. ap. Bin. tom. iii. Concil. part. i. p. 356. Whether
the γῆ σημαντρὶς, however, of Herodotus and the πηλὸς of Lucian and
of the Byzantine be the same kind of earth, can be determined with as
little certainty as whether the _creta_, called by some Roman authors a
sealing-earth, be different from both.
[349] Orat. in Verrem, iv. c. 9. In the passage referred to, some
instead of _cretula_ read _cerula_. I shall here take occasion to
remark also, that in the Acts of the Council of Nice before-mentioned,
instead of πηλὸν some read κηρόν: but I do not see a sufficient
reason for this alteration, as in the before-quoted passage of Lucian
it is expressly said, that people sealed κηρῷ ἣ πηλῷ. Reiske himself,
who proposes that amendment, says that πηλὸν may be retained.
Stephanus, however, does not give that meaning to this word in his
Lexicon. Pollux and Hesychius tell us, that the Athenians called
sealing-earth also ῥύπον.
[350] Orat. pro Flacco, c. 16.
[351] Serv. ad lib. vi. Æneid. p. 1037.
[352] Lib. xii. c. 43.
[353] Georg. i. v. 179.
[354] Creta fossica, qua stercorantur agri.--Varro, i. 7. 8. It appears
also that the πηλὸς of the Greeks signified a kind of potters’ earth.
Those who do not choose to rely upon our dictionaries, need only to
read the ancient Greek writers on husbandry, who speak of ἀῤῥαγεῖ πηλῷ
ἀργιλλώδει. See Geopon. x. c. 75. 12, and ix. c. 10. 4.
[355] I piombi antichi. Roma 1740, 4to, p. 16.
[356] Heineccius and others think that the _amphoræ vitreæ diligenter
gypsatæ_, in Petronius, were sealed; but it is much more probable that
they were only daubed over or closed with gypsum, for the same reason
that we pitch our casks.
[357] [Blue wax may now be seen in every wax-chandler’s shop; it is
coloured blue by means of indigo.]
[358] Heineccii Syntagma de Vet. Sigillis, 1719, p. 55.
[359] Plin. lib. xxii. c. 25.
[360] Trotz, Not. in Prim. Scribendi Origine, p. 73, 74.
[361] P. Festi de Verb. Sig. lib. xx. Hesychius calls this cement
μεμαλάγμενον κηρόν.--Plin. lib. xxxvi. c. 24.
[362] Lib. viii. c. 4.
[363] Nouveau Traité de Diplomatique. Paris, 1759, 4to, iv. p. 33.
[364] Mémoires conc. l’Histoire d’Auxerre. Par. 1743, ii. p. 517.
[365] Bibliothèque des Auteurs de Bourgogne, 2 vols. fol. ii. p. 217.
[366] Histoire Générale des Drogues. Paris, 1735.
[367] This Rousseau appears also in the History of Cochineal, as he
sent to Pomet a paper on that subject, which was contradicted by the
well-known Plumier in the Journal des Sçavans for 1694. He is mentioned
also by Labat, who says he saw him at Rochelle; but at that time he
must have been nearly a hundred years of age.
[368] Von Murr, in his learned Beschreibung der Merkwürdigkeiten in
Nürnberg, Nurnb. 1778, 8vo, p. 702, says that Spanish wax was not
invented, or at least not known, before the year 1559. This appears
also from a manuscript of the same year, which contains various
receipts in the arts and medicine. There are some in it for making the
common white sealing-wax green or red.
[369] See Chronicon Godvicense, p. 102.
[370] Wecker gives directions also to make an impression with calcined
gypsum, and a solution of gum or isinglass. Porta knew that this could
be done to greater perfection with amalgam of quicksilver; an art
employed even at present.
[371] Tavernier, in his Travels, says that in Surat lac is melted and
formed into sticks like sealing-wax. Compare with this Dapper’s Asia,
Nuremberg, 1681, fol. p. 237.
[372] Bruchstücke betreffend die Pflichten eines Staatsdieners; aus den
Handlungen des Raths Dreitz, nebst Bemerkungen vom ältesten Gebrauche
des Spanischen Siegelwachses, Frankf. 1785, 4to, p. 86; where the use
of these antiquarian researches is illustrated by examples worthy of
notice.
[373] Historische Untersuchungen gesammelt von J. G. Meusel, i. 3, p.
240.
[374] Original Letters of the Paston Family, temp. Henry VI. i. p. 21,
and p. 87 and 92.
[375] Meusel’s Geschichtforscher. Halle, 8vo, vi. p. 270.
[376] Ibid. iv. p. 251.
[377] Aromatum et Simplicium aliquot Historia, Garcia ab Horto auctore.
Antverpiæ 1574, 8vo, p. 33.
[378] Neu Titularbuch,--sambt etlichen hinzugethanen Gehaimnüssen und
Künsten, das Lesen und die Schreiberey betreffendt. 4to, 1579, p. 112.
[379] Archivische Nebenarbeiten und Nachrichten. Halle, 1785, 4to, ii.
p. 3.